DW's World

How Does Your Garden Grow

2010-06-19T15:14:00.000-04:00

Every time I go out to the garden I mumble the nursery rhyme Mary, Mary, quite contrary.........
The garden is doing great. We've been eating squash (freezing some too), and cucumbers.
Today started the green bean freezing process. 1/3 of the patch yielded almost 4# of beans. All cleaned, snapped and vac packed and in the freezer. I have a large cucumber salad in the fridge waiting for dinner tonight.
Here's how the garden has jumped up in just 1 month.

Additions To The Family

2010-06-04T17:33:00.000-04:00

A couple of weeks ago a man brought my husband a shoe box. Inside was a bird and the man had no idea what to do with it. Seems he found it out in his driveway. Hubby brings it home since he knows me and the kids are into doing "rescues". Lo and behold, this is what we found when the lid came off.

Her name is Speckles and she's quite tame as you can see by her sitting on my finger.
Nothing would do, the kids decided she was lonely and needed a cage mate. So here is Budgie. He's not tame yet, but we are working on him.

I had never imagined we would have birds as pets, but what the heck, we've had just about everything else. I draw the line at snakes and spiders - ain't happening.

I'm Baaaaaaaacccccccccckkkkkkkkkkk!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2010-06-03T15:14:00.000-04:00

Been a while. Real life intruded. Too much going on and not enough hours in the day.
Once Spring started Springing, all hands were on deck to get the garden ready, work on new fencing, just pretty much a good bit of work to clean up the winter mess.
Add in unexpected things going on and well, the blog was the last thing on my mind.
The garden is in - and doing great. I grew everything from seed except the peppers and 1 odd tomato and a basil plant. It's about 33x31. All new fencing. In it are heirloom Arkansas Traveler, Brandywine and Yellow Pear tomato - the odd ball is an heirloom Stripey I wanted to try. I also have managed to save 3 Italian Grape cherry tomato plants that I grew from seed. They are in a huge bucket on the porch where I can baby them.
Yellow summer squash, 2 kinds of cukes, Okra, Sugar Snap peas, 3 kinds of bush beans, Dill, Parsley, Basil, and in another bed sunflowers.

Dwarf Orange Tree

Beans

The whole garden

Plums - need to do some serious thinning

Peaches

RIP Poppy and Other News

2010-04-07T22:28:00.001-04:00

Sad note here - on the evening of March 20, we noticed my little Poppers was not walking right. She was a wild little thing that never would allow us to hold her. That night I held her and we "communed" a bit and she squeaked at me and went to sleep. She knew she was loved even if she was of "da debbil".

I'm almost finished getting the kids enrolled into a new "school". It's a Virtual Charter School for SC students, and is tailor made for kids like mine. The enrollment process has been a bear but I finally got the last of the paperwork submitted and now all we have to wait on is testing dates for placement. The great part of this school is it allows us to continue home schooling yet the kids have all the advantages and benefits of public school. We are all pretty excited about it.

My son has found "employment" of sorts. He wants an XBox Elite and I told him he had to earn it so he's been doing just that. Cutting grass, doing odd jobs here and there, he's really giving it his all.
My daughter wants a WII and the same rule applies. It's tougher for her to earn money since she is only 12 but we're working on it.

The grand plans for the mini-farm are not panning out as expected. We ran into many snags - weather being the main one. The trees still need to come down. We did finish fencing off the lower section so the goat can roam freely without doing any more destruction. She's done a number on the yard. My son hasn't helped matters since he has discovered the joys of go-carting in the woods and all. The garden is not in yet. I'm growing the plants from seed and most are ready for transplant but the ground isn't ready. The pool is still covered - no clue when we can get to that. Too many pans in the fire.

We had a hail storm on March 28. Pretty much came out of nowhere. Quarter sized hail.

The Circus came to town. Courtesy of my BIL. He's a Ring Master and also does other things contractually. We do the circus carny routine once a year. If I never smell elephant again it will be too soon.

The ponies feeding their bellies and awaiting saddling for the rides.

Long shot of one of the elephants getting a bath before the show. There's Peter taking care of the ponies.

Goofing around after the show. 1 guess as to who the Ring Master is.

Check back because I'll be adding some photo's.

Poppy

2010-02-01T15:02:00.003-05:00

If you look at the cedar shavings, they are probably 1/2 inch or smaller in size. The hut she is in is about 2 1/2 inches wide. Your average corn kernel is bigger than she can hold. This gal is teeny tiny and mean as a hornet sprayed with water. Sadly, she will never be a "hand" hamster. But boy she does have the good life. She loves baby fresh spinach, fresh carrot slivers, and cheddar cheese.

White Stuff

2010-02-01T15:01:00.000-05:00

It's A New Year

2010-01-06T00:22:00.000-05:00

I have neglected my musings here for about a month. Time flies when you are up to your neck in baking and holiday readying. I did more baking this year for the holidays than I have in probably 5 or 6 years. I think it's because I had a captive kitchen crew - they knew if they wanted goodies they had to help.

We were all covered in flour by the time we finished up that night. It had finally progressed to a flour battle.

But, the cookies were scrumdilyiscious.

Christmas was a flurry of paper and "Wow ! You listened!!!". I kept a small notebook at my computer that I wrote down ideas all year long that the kids asked for. They didn't get hardly any of what they wanted but what they got was exactly what they had hoped for. Another notch in my belt.

The biggest thing that happened on Christmas day was my 14 year old son was taught how to shave for the first time. He was really getting to be a wooly bear. So one of his gifts included a snazzy razor and Daddy taught him all the rules and regulations. Once he got past playing with the shaving creme it was down to business....

Looks like Daddy could use a shave as well.

My husband gave me a wonderful gift - my Poppy. She's a Dwarf Russian Hamster. 5 months old. Quite wild but she's getting used to me as each day passes. She doesn't go for blood with her choppers anymore so that's a good sign.

She was housed temporarily in a very old hamster cage. We have set her up in a 10 gal aquarium now and her favorite thing to do is tunnel. Dwarf hamsters are not your average climbers so the old cage just wasn't suitable for her. Now she has scurry room and is much happier. Now to teach the cats that she is not the snack de'jour.

We've pretty much bedded down for the winter. The green house is limping along. It's a good project and a great learning experience. We've harvested a good many cucumbers and the tomato plants are loaded with fruit but the ripening is so slow going. I'm focusing now on planning out the Spring Garden and starting seeds for it. The greenhouse experiment will definately be expanded next fall - we have learned quite a lot even if it's trial by fire.

The weather changed so fast for us that we did not get all the trees down that we had intended to. We have enough down to open up the back area to more sunlight but not enough to proceed with our shed building plans. Perhaps that will happen closer to spring. Right now we are having what we Southerners call an Arctic Blast - nights in the teens and days in the 30's. Not conducive to working outside if you are not acclimated to it. Thankfully, we have a delivery of pre-split wood coming tomorrow - yes we had to purchase wood as we have run out of suitable wood after 12 years here. We don't yet own a vehicle that can transport wood so we had to pay for it to be delivered - won't happen again, I can assure you. What we have coming should last the winter for us. Using the fireplace to assist in the heating saves us a ton on the electric bill. We once entertained the idea of buying land and homesteading in Montana. Uhhhh NO! The last week or so has convinced me that we are quite content right where we are (for now).

T'Was 2 Days After Christmas

2009-12-28T11:29:00.000-05:00

And all through the house,

not a creature was stirring,

not even a mouse.

"This simply will not do", my husband remarked.

So off in the van he dashed to PetsMart.

He raced through the streets where the drivers were wonky

and arriving back home he handed me

POPPY

Christmas On The Cheap

2009-12-19T15:03:00.002-05:00

I read this on another site and thought it was a very good lesson to learn and think about.

It's said that you can never have to many friends, but Christmas was just a week away and I had five people left to shop for on my Christmas list and only three dollars to my name. How do you tell you mother, brother, and three friends that you can only spend sixty cent on each of them?
"Let's set a price limit on our gifts this year," I suggested to my best friend, Joanie.
"That's a good idea," Joanie agreed. "How about nothing over five dollars?"
"How about nothing over sixty cents?" I felt like the biggest cheapskate in the world.
"I guess this is where I'm supposed to say it's not the gift, it's the thought that counts," Joanie smiled. "But don't blame me if all you get is a stick of gum!"
It is almost impossible to buy anything for under sixty cents, so it was going to have to be very small gifts with very big thoughts. I'd never spent so much time or effort trying to come up with the right gift for the right person. Finally, Christmas day arrived, and I was worried how people would feel about my "cheap" gifts.
I gave my mother a scented candle with a note that said, "You are the brightest light in my life." Shoe almost cried when she read the note.
I gave my brother a wooden ruler. On the back of it I'd painted. "No brother in the world could measure up to you." He gave me a bag of sugar and had written on i t "You're sweet." He'd never said anything like that to me before.
For Joanie, I painted an old pair of shoes gold and stuck flowers in them with a note that said, "No one could ever fill your shoes." She gave me a feather and a Band Aid. She said I always tickled her funny bone and made her laugh until her sides ached.
To my other two friends, I gave one a paper fan and wrote on it, "I'm your biggest fan." To the other, I gave a calculator that cost one dollar and I painted a message on the back, "You can always count on me." They gave me a rusty horseshoe for luck and a bundle of sticks tied with a red ribbon because "friends stick together."
I don't remember all the other gifts that I got from people last Christmas, but I remember every one of the "cheap" gifts.
My brother thinks I am sweet. My mother knows she is the most important person in my life. Joanie thinks I'm funny and I made her laugh, which is important because her dad moved away last year and she misses him and is sad sometimes.
I was worried I wouldn't have enough money for Christmas gift, but I gave to five people and still had twenty cents left over. We all still talk about our "cheap" gifts and how much fun it was to come up with a gift that cost pennies but told someone how we really felt about them. On my bookshelf, I still have a bag of sugar, a feather, a horseshoe, and a bundle of sticks. . . and they are priceless

Mom....this one's for you...............

2009-12-06T23:05:00.002-05:00

Greenhouse Update

2009-12-05T14:29:00.000-05:00

The greenhouse is doing wonderfully well. Better than anticipated. We are managing to keep the night temperatures hovering around 68 - 72. Day temps are still hard to regulate but we are learning fast. One thing I have discovered though - the reason why "hot house" produce is much more expensive. It takes longer for the plants to produce to a ripened stage, plus the upkeep is much more labor intensive than traditional gardening.
Because we are growing directly in the soil, the soil temps are lower but no where near as low as the outside ground. Next year will see the greenhouse majorly expanded and raised grow boxes installed.

Cucumbers by Christmas time ........

They look so inviting and it's hard to keep from picking one just to taste.

The Tomato plants are thriving. I have noticed they are not as big as a traditional garden tomato plant. But they sure are blooming. The Basil is doing way better than it did all summer long.
We are trying Snow Peas. Just a few vines. They are growing by leaps and bounds but no signs of blossoms just yet.

This has really been an adventure in learning for us. It has also satisfied my husbands' yearning to dig in the dirt during the barren winter months here. Even though I have a degree in Horticulture, my husband is the one who "digs" gardening more than I do. Many a day can find him puttering around in the garden and now in the greenhouse. He even has a lawn chair in it so he can sit and enjoy the "fruits" of his labor.

Root Beer Bread

2009-12-04T17:26:00.001-05:00

Yes you read that correctly - ROOT BEER Bread. Sounds funky don't it?
A couple of years ago I was gifted with a gift box of specialty bread mixes. I used all but the beer bread mix. That box kept getting shunted around in the pantry. Why? No beer in the house unless I am making a big pot of chili. Well the other day I pulled that box out with every intention of tossing it. I read the instructions and it said use beer, soda or carbonated water. I got a wild hair. Root beer. I have that. It's "beer". It's soda. It's carbonated. So, there it all went into the mixing bowl. The end result was a bit different. Sweet. Aftertaste of Root beer. Not bad. My son has decided he wants that bread all the time. Guess what boys and girls. It was a mix. I can't replicate it since the box it came in was used as firestarter in the fireplace.

Fast forward to today. I go online and search out recipes for Root Beer Bread. No luck. Then my feeble mind reminds me "Dummy, it's beer bread". So I find a suitable recipe for beer bread. Recipe Goldmine has saved my butt many a time. I used the recipe, doubled it, and replaced the beer with root beer. Tossed it all in the bread machine and voila. End result part 2 - that's some goooooooood bread. Not sweet yet not bland. Just the right amount of flavor.

Root Beer Bread

1/2 cup water (room temp)

1 1/3 cup Root Beer (room temp) you can use regular beer if you wish

2 Tablespoons oil

2 teaspoons lemon juice

2 teaspoons salt

4 Tablespoons Sugar

4 cups all purpose flour or Bread flour

1 individual packet of yeast.

Place liquids then other ingredients in the bread pan first. Add flour. Place yeast on top. Choose 2# loaf size and light color.

The Grinch Missed One

2009-12-01T23:03:00.001-05:00

23 days before Christmas. Apparently the Grinch got his calendar mixed up. He came and took all my Who pudding and Roast Beast. However, he failed to remove the most annoying thing.

Peanut decided he was the bestest, most cutest ornament on the whole tree. Until we tried to get him out of it, that is. Photo and finger compliments of my daughter.

Bing Bing

2009-11-30T15:08:00.002-05:00

SILENCE!!!! night

2009-11-30T01:08:00.003-05:00

My Hero - Achmed.
You folks will have to forgive for a bit. I just discovered embedding youtube videos and well.....I have to play yanno............

Muppets!!!!!

2009-11-29T22:43:00.005-05:00

Ghosts of Christmas Past

2009-11-26T00:43:00.001-05:00

All in honor of Ebeneezer Scrooge.............
Now that we are underway to December and all that entails, I thought I would take the time to stroll down memory lane. Maybe post a few pictures, tell a tale or two, and take a glimpse at the past here and there. This particular post will grow as time goes on and I remember to type out my fuzzy recollections.

The most logical place to start would be with me. Since I have the memories vividly etched in my data base.

My very first Christmas Memory -

I was 5. We had just moved to town in September (may have been late August but that is fuzzy). Editor's note here - My Mom just informed me it was in February. We moved into a small rental house that really did not have enough room for 5 people but my Mom made do. Christmas, I'm sure, was on my Mom's mind. I wouldn't know. She didn't really tell us details. Being 5 I just knew Santa would answer my wish list. Honestly, I don't know how we ate those first few months, because my Mom was just starting a new job after never really being in the workforce at all, going to night school (I believe)and basically just trying to survive.

One weekend day, my Great Uncle and Aunt knocked on the door. They were bringing us a tree. To my small mind, that tree was a Redwood. Huge! They placed it in the Livingroom and we all stood back and just stared at it. I remember laying under it at night, dreaming of Reindeer and sugar plums. That tree stood naked of decorations for what seemed like the longest time. Sure, my sister and I would haphazardly perch board game pieces and paper cut-outs in the branches but we would always take them away before anyone else would see them. I'm not sure why.

One day the tree blossomed into an array of wonder. It was decorated with glass balls, glass soldiers, lights and tinsel that seemed to find its way into every nook and cranny around the house. I don't think we (any of us) have a picture of that tree but my 5 yr old's memory is one of fantastical wonder. That was one spectacular tree. I was certain that no one in the whole world had one that fantastic, that special, that beautiful. I saw pictures of the tree in NY and in my mind that tree was a "Charlie Brown Tree" compared to ours.

In those days we always went to my Great Grandmother's home for a family Christmas get-together on Christmas Eve. Boring. I'm sure the adults enjoyed it but I can say without a shadow of a doubt that us kids hated and dreaded going every year. What I would give now to have that opportunity, only changed a good bit. We would get home late at night, get ready for Santa to visit and settle down. I bet my Mom hated Christmas eve what with having to scarf down cookies and milk. Maybe not, now that I think harder about it.

Christmas morning that year - oh my. I will never ever forget it. I have shared this story with my family over the years, told a few friends and I never tire of talking about that wonderful, magical morning.

We awakened to a living room stuffed to the gills with gift. I know, a child's mind expands what really happened but I swear, that room was stuffed. Toys, clothes, odds and ends, food, stockings overflowing with those traditional oranges and apples and nuts. My Grandmother (who had a key to the house) and her sister and BIL came in the night and set a spread for us that I will never forget. Personally, I thought Santa was off his rocker but as I grew older, I understood what happened.

Because of that memory, every year I do something extra for a stranger. It doesn't have to be much. Just that gesture to tell someone that "yes, they do count". I'm not ringing my own bell or trying to be superficial, I'm just stating a fact. One day in my childhood has caused me to think outside of my own little bubble. My elders taught me to give from the heart, even if I can't give from the pocketbook. For that I am eternally grateful.

If I could have a Christmas Wish this year, it would be to have the chance to sit down and say Thank You to my Grandmother, Great Aunt and Uncle and most especially to my Mom.

I can fulfill part of that wish -
"Mom - Thank You. For Everything".

Oh Look..........

2009-11-24T14:33:00.001-05:00

Another post about Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving to all....
TWAS THE NIGHT OF THANKSGIVING,
BUT I JUST COULDN'T SLEEP.
I TRIED COUNTING BACKWARDS,
I TRIED COUNTING SHEEP.

THE LEFTOVERS BECKONED -
THE DARK MEAT AND WHITE,
BUT I FOUGHT THE TEMPTATION
WITH ALL OF MY MIGHT.

TOSSING AND TURNING WITH ANTICIPATION,
THE THOUGHT OF A SNACK BECAME INFATUATION.
SO, I RACED TO THE KITCHEN, FLUNG OPEN THE DOOR,
AND GAZED AT THE FRIDGE, FULL OF GOODIES GALORE.
GOBBLED UP TURKEY AND BUTTERED POTATOES,
PICKLES AND CARROTS, BEANS AND TOMATOES.

I FELT MYSELF SWELLING SO PLUMP AND SO ROUND,
'TIL ALL OF A SUDDEN, I ROSE OFF THE GROUND.
I CRASHED THROUGH THE CEILING, FLOATING INTO THE SKY,
WITH A MOUTHFUL OF PUDDING AND A HANDFUL OF PIE.
BUT, I MANAGED TO YELL AS I SOARED PAST THE TREES....
HAPPY EATING TO ALL - PASS THE CRANBERRIES, PLEASE.

MAY YOUR STUFFING BE TASTY,
MAY YOUR TURKEY BE PLUMP.
MAY YOUR POTATOES 'N GRAVY HAVE NARY A LUMP.
MAY YOUR YAMS BE DELICIOUS.
MAY YOUR PIES TAKE THE PRIZE,
MAY YOUR THANKSGIVING DINNER STAY OFF OF YOUR THIGHS!!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO ALL

Author Unknown

Thanksgiving Days Gone By

2009-11-17T01:00:00.003-05:00

I was sitting and chilling with the kids today. We were discussing what we were going to do for Thanksgiving. This year is going to be a bit different. My MIL will be here (hopefully) this week so I plan to do a spread a week early. All the traditional stuff. Then we'll do a smaller one next week for just us.

Anyways, my kids were asking about my days growing up and our Thanksgiving dinners. Honestly, I do not recall any from my childhood. The earliest one I do remember was as a teen. But not the day, the day after. My middle sister and I were eating leftovers and sat at the table stuffing small olives with turkey. Do you have any idea how hard it was to put a sliver of Turkey into an olive? In between stuffing olives we pigged out on rolls with turkey, dressing and cranberry sauce - a sandwich if you will. Then we went out in her red VW Bug and looked at Christmas lights and sang from the top of our lungs every Christmas Carol we could remember the words to and some we made up.

The most memorable Thanksgiving happened about 25 years ago. This was after middle sister was married. Dinner was always at Mom's house. Mom and I (well mostly mom) would do the bulk of the cooking. My Grandmother always brought her wonderful, famous Macaroni and Cheese pie, cornbread and sometimes a pie or two. Mom and I would set the table, putting all the foods in their dishes on the table so we could all sit down and eat. Sometimes we would put things out and go back to cooking or make a quick check on the guests.

Well, I had a cat. Mr Jingle Bell. My sister gave him to me for Christmas when I was 14. I think he hated my Grandmother. I really do. The feeling was mutual. Every time she visited, that cat would sneak up and bat her in the back of the head.

Back to the table spread. Picture a nice table, laid out with dressing on a platter, rolls, greenbean casserole, corn, carrots, cranberry sauce, pickles, etc and the "famous" macaroni pie. The Turkey and Ham had not made it to the table yet. Now picture a 15# cat, gorging himself on said macaroni pie. My mom almost had heart failure. She and I were the only ones who knew. What did Mom do? She very quietly took a spoon and "messed" the pie up so that no one would know. Nobody did but the two of us. Wonder why she and I didn't eat any that day? Um, Sis? Now you know. You ate cat spit that day.

After that, all of my Thanksgiving days have been pretty boring. But, every time I make macaroni and cheese, at least now everyone knows why I might grin and chuckle a bit.

Thanksgiving

2009-11-15T09:30:00.000-05:00

Thanksgiving - everyone (well almost everyone) wants to have a bang up meal. It's tradition, doncha know?
Honestly, it has always been an expensive endeavor for me in years past. I don't have hordes of people gnoshing at my table. It's always just us. Sometimes I can cajole a relative to eat with us but most often, everyone has their own plans.
I have created a Thanksgiving Monster. Gotta have those dishes you grew up with. Gotta have more food than the NFL team of the year could pack away. Gonna have to relegate your menus for days to revolve around T'Day leftovers. Yeah the leftovers may save you cash for another meal but my goodness, one can only eat so much Turkey and stuff, no matter how you disguise it. Is it really a savings? Well yeah, if you do it the right way (heh - my way).

This year I have decided to scale back. I am going to use what I have on hand and really deep discount shop.
Here's my menu and the broken down cost:

12 # Turkey Hen - $5.88. I'm gonna grill that bird and add some peach wood to the coals. Baste with some honey every now and then. (Got this bird on a deep sale)

Dressing - we here in the South call it dressing. We don't stuff the butt of the bird. Why would anyone eat anything that came out of a butt? Anyways - cornbread - a pan full . Bread crumbs - day old bread or whatever you have on hand cut up and toasted. 1 Onion, 1 stalk of celery, 1/2 a bell pepper all chopped up and saute'd in butter. Toss in some salt and pepper, some chicken broth and bake that puppy in a pan till it squeals. Um - maybe about $2.50, could be $4.00 depending on where you get your "stuff".

Corn - a bag of frozen whole kernel corn, simmered with butter, milk and honey, some salt and pepper. Costs me $1.29 (no name brand, 1#)

Taters - Well that's a taste thing there - I like sweet taters but everyone else likes plain Russet smashed taters. So I'm going to just do the Russets. Peel and boil until dead, drain, add butter, milk, salt, pepper, and a dollop of sour cream. Smash until there is nothing left to smash. For us - that's probably about $1.00

Green Beans - what Southerner would have a Thanksgiving spread without Green Beans - Casserole that is.

Me - I simmer garden beans (we grew them and snapped them and froze them) in beef broth until just tender. Drain, toss with fresh chopped onions, cream of mushroom soup, and bake until just right. Add some of those cholesterol killer french fried onions on top and bake some more. Mmmmmmmmmmm Boy! I'm guessing about $2.00.

Pumpkin Pie - Well the Halloween Jackolanterns didn't give us our pies. Hmmmph - at $7 a piece they should have............... Anyways - I use canned pumpkin and a premade shell. Add the spices and it tastes just yummy. I'm too lazy to make my own shell. Total cost about $3.00
Bread - I toss some ingredients in the ABM and let it do its thing. Hmmmm....never thought about it but maybe about a buck?

Leftovers - if you are lucky you can have another full meal. After that, nobody wants to eat leftovers. Here's what I do:

The turkey gets stripped - all the meat I can pull off goes into zip lok bags for another meal a month from now.
The turkey carcass goes into the stockpot and gets simmered until it almost disappears. That's some good broth. Save it after it's cooled and strained and plop in the freezer for a pot of soup later down the road.
Corn and carrots go in the freezer to become part of turkey soup.
Dressing, if any is leftover, gets left out to dry. I grind it up and make breading out of it for other meats. Kept in the freezer it lasts a good while.
The goat loves leftover green bean casserole so that's where that goes.
Instead of soup I may make a potpie but I still have that broth to use later.
If there are leftover taters (rare here) I freeze them and use as a thickener for creamed soup bases.

Let's look at overall cost - for a really good spread in my house -

$20.00.

Yep, that's it. That includes everything, spices, additions, etc. Take it a step further and you can break it down even more - into meals. I get at least 4 meals out of Thanksgiving dinner. $5 a meal ain't none too shabby. Feeding 4 people for $5 a big meal is wonderful in this economy. Having Turkey Broth in the freezer is even better. I don't know about you but heating up a pot of broth when you are feeling puny is a great thing for us.

Here's hoping you all have a great Thanksgiving Feast!

What is it about Visitors?

2009-11-07T22:47:00.000-05:00

No, I'm not talking about the new TV series "V", although I have tuned in and think it may end up on my lineup each week. I remember getting all po'd when the original was on and I had to work that night. I didn't have a VCR at the time so I missed pretty much all of it back in the 80's. Of course it didn't help having a supervisor at the time that was manic about not missing an episode - he would make absolutely sure he was off on the nights "V" came on and also "Beauty and the Beast".
Anyways, I digress.....
What is it about having visitors coming to your home for a few days that puts you in a panic cleaning mode? You know you clean daily. Dust, vacuum, wash hand prints off the walls, mop, the whole nine yards. But let anyone say they are coming to stay for a couple of days and OMG! It's Panic Mode time! With capital letters!
You know full well your visitor is not going to look behind a door, or lift a curtain or perhaps move that canister on your counter or traverse to the very back corner of your property to discover your newly laid compost bin yet you positively, in your mind, know for a fact that they will. While you are sleeping. When your back is turned. Or better yet, in front of you when you least expect it. You know they are gonna do it and stand there with an "AHA! I gotcha" look an their faces. Humiliation. Feelings of inadequacy. It's all in your mind you know. At least that's what we tell ourselves.
I am expecting a VIP visit in 2 weeks. Yep, my Mother In Law. She's the sweetest (aside from my Mom) woman you could ever meet. I love her almost as much as my own Mommy. However, when my Mom visits, I make sure I don't have dirty dishes on the counter. That's it. She knows me and wuvs me anyways.
There's something about in laws coming to visit. You feel as though you are under a microscope (even though you aren't, hopefully).
Today I have washed every curtain in the house, pressure washed the new blinds I just bought about 5 months ago, scrubbed windows I know any sane person won't even think to look through, and now it's off to the carpet and upholstery. Hmmm...thinking maybe a quick pressure washing of the siding of the house may be in order. I gotta mow the lawn, trim the hedges, weed the flower beds....sheesh. I should be under the impending doom of Visitors more often. Oh wait....the dog needs a bath!
Hubby put the pressure washer up in the shed and I was standing on the back porch almost wanting to yell "NO!!!! Leave it out, I need to wash some shoes or something". That sucker is coming back out tomorrow and I am gonna use it!

Dear Peanut

2009-11-06T18:18:00.003-05:00

Dear Peanut,

I have some issues with you right now that I would like to hash out. And now is as good a time as any with you laying over my arms while I am trying to type on the computer. You don't even look comfortable and you can't breathe lying like that with your butt higher up than your head but your brain is the size of a walnut so I will forgive you.

First of all, the litter box. Is it your goal to poop on the rim of the box? Because if it is, bravo! Mission accomplished, you can stop now. You have proven your point. It is not funny anymore, and I have run out of sticks in the yard to clean it off with. The box is big enough, and you are still small, so don't even go there.

Now... making pointless, incessant noises. If I take something away from you because I am tired of hearing it scoot across the floor for the last 2 hours, it does not mean to go find something else to mess with. I mean really where do you find this stuff? A wad of paper? A bottle cap? Is that really that fun to play with?

I put things on the coffee table because I want them there. I do not want you to knock EVERYTHING off of the coffee table in one of your mindless "tearing ass through the house for no reason" adventures every single day. Once in a while, it is amusing. Every day, it's not that funny.

Your hiney stinks. I mean REALLY stinks. Like the worst poop you've ever smelled. Why do you smell soooo horrible? I thought cats were clean! I have never experienced this smelly, stinky cat phenomena with any other cat on this Earth. Why, God, did you give me the most stinky cat in this solar system? And Peanut, why do you insist on showing me your 'dairy air'? I know it stinks, but what am I supposed to do about it? Bathe you??? LOL! Remember the last time that happened? I still have the scars... Also, when you sit on my arm, please have the kindness to put your tail over your hiney so it doesn't come into contact with my skin. I might catch something.

Lastly, I am allergic to you. I know this isn't your fault, but knowing this, why do you insist on rubbing the whole length of your body on my face?

Okay... I just pulled a CAT HAIR out of my eye. No wonder my eyes are itchy if you are purposefully depositing your dander into my eyes! What are you trying to prove here? That you know I'm stuck with you? While you're busy carrying things about the house in your mouth to deposit them into some area that I haven't discovered yet- would you mind bringing me a piece of sandpaper to me so that I can alleviate the itching you've caused me? Oh- while we're on this subject, I need my hair ties back- I know you have them.

Thanks !!

.

Helpful Hints and Stuff

2009-11-05T16:08:00.001-05:00

I'm always on the lookout for anything to make life easier and ultimately save some cash. I got a catalog in the mail a couple of weeks ago, no clue what it was. It had a list of hints and tips in it that I tore out and saved. I've looked all over for a way to give attribution to these tips but they all point to different places so here's some that I read -

For gardening -

Use the cooled leftover water from steamed vegetables to water your houseplants.
Use plastic "peanuts" from your shipping packages in the bottom of your flower pots to aid in drainage.
Add a crushed eggshell to a container of water. Let sit for a few days and then water your plants with it. This works really well for tomato plants as the extra calcium will help deter blossom end rot.
Poke holes in the bottom of a tin can and add mothballs. Place upside down (holes facing up) in your garden to discourage 4 legged pests.
Dig up a dandelion plant and put a few drops of pure white vinegar in the hole. The vinegar will kill any root left and grass will grow over the treated spot.

I just looked at page 2 and it was nothing more than 1/2 hints suggesting you buy the book to get the whole thing. Nah, not happening. The internet can offer as many if not more than a book could. So I'll stop at the gardening part since I am in the full "garden" swing right now.

So far I think perhaps we might just do better winter gardening in the greenhouse than we do in the regular garden during the summer. Everything is growing like crazy. Hubby had to tie the cukes to the trellis he made and today, looks like more coaxing is in the works. I think I may have some tiny little budding blossoms on a couple of the tomato plants. The whole thing will take some extra work since Mother Nature cannot do her job naturally. We'll have to hand "fertilize" each and every blossom that comes along - no buggies or wind to do it for us.

As I was taking care of Nanny Belle McPhee this morning, I stood gazing at our pool. Such a lovely, verdant shade of green. We haven't gotten the cover on it yet - we got the cover out, cleaned it off and well, it's sitting, nicely folded up, on the picnic table. I may just buy some fish and raise my own They'd have the perfect growing conditions, that's for sure. I can just picture my daughter sitting on the deck, fishing pole in hand, murmuring "here fishie, fishie". She'd catch one, give it a name then toss it back and we'd never, ever be allowed to eat it.

It's November!

2009-11-01T14:25:00.000-05:00

The days of the year are getting shorter. Halloween has come and gone and now it's time to start thinking Turkey. Looking around I see the change of the season. The trees are turning bright gold and orange, even brown. Less grass to mow. Gardens going to sleep. While we have already had a couple of frosts, the weather sure isn't accepting that it's Fall. Locally, the farmers are pretty much getting their fields ready for the winter slumber. Visually it looks like everything is done and it's time to hunker down for a "cold winter's nap".

Behind the scenes is another story. Once the gardens are set to rest, the mental work begins. Planning for next year. Figuring out what did well and didn't and trying to capitalize on that and hope your predictions are right.

I spend my winters thinking about what we did the past growing season and try to figure out how to do it better. "Did that new variety of whatever work well or should I go back to something old and tested". Thumbing through seed catalogs and dreaming of growing everything I see is a favorite past time of mine. Alas, I know my limits and try not to venture too far from my tried and true varieties.

Our greenhouse is doing very well. The volunteer mystery plants have been identified - Cucumbers. They are starting to send out their tendrils so a trellis of some sort must be installed. The volunteer tomato plants are thriving, as is the Basil. We planted Sugar Snap Peas last week and they are starting to come up. We are not having any problem keeping it heated at night when the temps get into the 40's. During the day it goes from as little as 10 degrees warmer to 50 degrees warmer than the outside air. That's calling for some close attention so it can be ventilated to regulate the temperatures. I'm looking forward to using it to start my transplants for next year's big garden. That should save me a ton of money as transplants are expensive in these parts. Plus I'll be able to start the plant varieties I prefer and know will do well in my garden. Many years I am restricted to what the garden centers offer.

So far, about 12 trees have been cut down. Still many more to go. Two are going to cause a real issue when their turn comes - pretty big size, they are leaning, and are too close to our storage shed and the pool. Those two will have to be cut down a few feet at a time. The goat is in pine needle heaven right now. She stays right at the pile of branches and has an all you can eat buffet. It's a good thing we don't milk her because the milk would taste awful.

2009-10-30T12:35:00.001-04:00

Piggy Flu

2009-10-29T01:14:00.000-04:00

First off, I am not making light of the H1N1 Virus that is running rampant. It is a very serious illness and should be treated as such. Too many people have contracted it and died for my liking. I call it the Piggy Flu because it was originally called the Swine Flu until some PTB's thought it wasn't politically or economically correct to use that term (Swine equal Porcine equals Pork and well....there you go).

At any rate, I greatly fear that dreaded virus as I have young children and my husband and I aren't exactly spring chickens. Because of health reasons, I am unable to have vaccines for either H1N1, Flu or Pneumonia. We looked into getting H1N1 vaccines for my husband and children and guess what - none are available, and none of them fall into the high risk category. I beg to differ - for my husband at any rate. He works with the public, coming into contact with who knows what a thousand times a day. He also qualifies chronologically as a senior citizen (sorry Hubs). However, because he's a healthy Senior, he does not qualify. That leaves my children. Because we home school, they are not considered in the risk category. Forget the fact that all of their friends are public schooled and they are also out in the public. Sure, they are not sequestered in a closed room with potentially 30 hacking and feverish kids, but they can and do catch "bugs" from time to time.

So what's a person to do?
Well we could sit back and just hope and pray we will be fine, we could think egotistically that "that would never happen to us" or we can be proactive.

I choose "proactive". What we are doing may not be the "right thing to do" but it is what we think is best for us and our situation.

First off, we look at where we may get those virulent buggies from and try to eliminate or at least try to stop them dead in their tracks. Most of my points are common knowledge but should be revisited.

Hubby works with the public. Judicial spraying of Lysol, use of anti-bacterial wipes and hand sanitizer throughout the day at his place of employment not only might protect him but also his employees and the public as well.

After a day out of shopping or whatever, we wash up as soon as we come home. Trying not to touch our faces or mouths with our hands in the mean time.
Keeping the house well aired out regardless of outside temperatures or weather.
Use of Lysol and anti-bacterial products. Some tout no use of them because the use may actually cause differing strains to mutate but I'm going to be safe rather than sorry later.
Never, ever share drinks, etc. Not even amongst ourselves. That include hands in the chip bag, double dipping, passing a handful of something to another.
Keep up on laundry - The dryer will kill any germs (supposedly) that washing does not.
Completely clean all of your dishes. Use a dishwasher if you have one. If you don't, soak your dishes for a few minutes in very hot, soapy water, scrub well and rinse with the hottest water you have. Dry immediately with a clean towel.
Stay current on vitamin supplements if your diet requires them. I push extra Vitamin C regularly because I know we don't get enough in our diet due to dietary likes and dislikes.
The above takes me to eating a well balanced diet. Avoid convenient foods and go for good old fashioned cooking. You know what you put in it.
Avoid closed, stuffy places. Did you know the most likely place to contract a bug of some sort is your doctor's office waiting room?
Spray the inside of your vehicle from time to time with Lysol. Not only will it help kill viruses and bacteria it will also make it smell better.
Get enough rest. Lack of sleep runs your system down and lets you be open to "invaders".
If someone has a cold or a bug, try to avoid them. Hard to do if the sick one is a loved one but by taking precautions you can still be a loving, caring person.

Will all the above keep us healthy? I don't know. I sure don't want to take a chance.
Here's to hoping everyone who reads this gets through this "National Emergency" and is healthy as can be.

Squash - that yummy veggie

2009-10-27T00:40:00.001-04:00

We love Squash - specifically yellow summer Squash. I grow it every year and also look for good buys on it at the grocery store. We like it stewed with onions, breaded and fried, lightly simmered with other veggies, just about any way you can imagine.
I recall reading a recipe a couple of years ago for Squash Casserole. I couldn't remember where or even all the ingredients so i winged it one night. Here's what I came up with:

6-8 firm Yellow Squash, cleaned and sliced 1/4" thick (you can use frozen as well, just add more cooking time)
1 small onion, diced
1 TBSP butter
Cheese Crackers (any brand will do)
1 egg
1/2 cup milk
Sliced or shredded sharp cheddar cheese (Can't tell you how much, just follow the directions)
Salt and Pepper

Start by spraying your casserole dish with cooking spray. Quickly saute' the onions in butter until opaque, set aside. Place a layer of squash, a layer of onions, a layer of crushed cheese crackers, a layer of cheese and lightly salt and pepper. Continue building your layers until your dish is full. Once it is full, put a layer of crushed crackers on top. Mix the egg and milk together and pour over the entire dish. Seal tightly with aluminum foil. Bake at 350 for about an hour - add maybe 30 minutes more for frozen squash. Uncover and place cheese on top and return to oven until bubbly and cooked to your likes.

Here is the final presentation - served with Montreal Grilled Chicken and English Peas.

This recipe is so versatile - you can substitute any vegetable and it turns out yummy. Try using chopped cabbage, sliced potatoes, add in diced chicken, you decide. You could also use potatoes, diced ham or crumbled sausage, increase the egg and make a breakfast casserole. The possibilities are endless.

The Logging has begun.....

2009-10-26T22:59:00.001-04:00

The area where we plan to house the goats and chickens is overloaded with small pine trees. They make the area too shady and also house way too many ticks for my liking. I think I counted well over 30 trees to take down. That area has already had about 30 removed over the years. We originally left them so the kids could have a shaded area to play in. We had built a play fort with swings, a sand table, etc. The play fort became the deck to our pool and the sand table finally just bit the dust.

The logging began late this afternoon. We can't just cut down the trees - they have to be limbed from the top down. That means Hubby and son climb like monkeys, hold on tight and start sawing. It's a slow process to say the least. If I hear my husband say "oh crap" one more time while up in a tree, I may just shake him out. We are planning to use the trunks as building logs for the goat sheds. The branches will be burned and the ash used in the compost bin and other areas. There are a couple of young Oaks, a Hickory and I think 3 Sweet Gum that we will leave. My biggest concern is that when we take down all the trees, the barren soil will wash really bad. We'll have to get a cover crop of some sort growing as quickly as possible.

My son and his friends are having a blast helping take out the trees. They love to hack and slash knowing they won't get into trouble. I'm paying his two best buddies with lots of Koolade and plenty of treats. They're happy all the way around. I figure it will take a couple of months to get all the trees down.

Here's a southern sunset......

Pantry and Stocking Up

2009-10-20T12:13:00.001-04:00

When I was growing up, my mom had very little money - divorced mother of 4. She did (now that I look back) phenomenally in providing for us. Of course, as a kid, I bemoaned the lack of money and felt left out because I didn't get the latest craze in clothes and gadgets. Pshhhhhhhhht....I really appreciate that fact now that I have my own greedy little monsters (just kidding about the greedy monster part....maybe). I have the ability to look them in the eye and say "I didn't die without so and so and neither will you".

Once, when I was in highschool, the craze was Reeboks and Izod shirts and button down collar shirts. Those were some pricey items in the day. My mom would by off brand shirts and sew buttons on the collars so they would look the part. I remember she bought me a pair of Asahi(sp) sneakers. I was so proud of them. I scrubbed them daily with a toothbrush to keep them pristine. Back in those days that was a half weeks worth of groceries.

I went to work at 11 in the peach shed. My mom was an office manager for the grower and well....it seemed an automatic thing that I would work instead of spend my summers roaming the streets (which I probably would have done otherwise). I hated every minute of every day but looking back, I am soooooo glad my mom made me do it. It taught me the value of work, the way to save and the ability to stay out of trouble. Thanks Mom!!!!!!!

So, to get back on the original topic. A friend of mine (click the link) jogged my memory about food storage so here goes.
In years past, pantries and stocking up brought visions of bunkers of food stores awaiting the end of the world or something. Years ago, when I heard of people storing food stuffs, I was thinking of the ones who went to the hills awaiting a nuclear war or mass civil war. Those people weren't too far off the mark, only in regards to putting by and storing for the future. We, today, have learned a lot from what may have been termed nutcases years ago. Those people found out how to store food long term. Those people developed recipes to use that stored food. Those people taught us a whole slew of things that can be used every day by the average person.

Pantry - what is it? It can be your cabinets in your kitchen, it can be a small space or a large space. It can be separate from your kitchen, it can even be miles away from your home. You determine where the best place to store food is. Don't think you have no space to store excess - look to the underneath of beds, that hall closet that gathers everything, make a table with a nice cover draped over a few cases of veggies or bottled water, utilize the top shelves of all closets, slide a case of canned goods under the couch, the possibilities are endless. One friend of mine stores packages of toilet paper in the oddest of places but it works for her. That's what you should look for in your own home - what wasted space you can use and how you can make it work for you.

Now, you may be thinking - why store? Well, you all know how prices are skyrocketing. Have been for months on end and no end in sight. Hit the sales, use coupons, take advantage of BOGO's (buy one get one free sales). What you buy today at $1 may cost $3 in just a few short months. That's my thought process. I'm not thinking world war whatever - I am thinking of inherent price spikes, unexpected job loss, emergencies, etc and how to ease the pain on down the road.

What do you store? No one can tell you. Sure, everyone can tell you about the basics like flour, sugar, salt, oil but......
You have to do the thinking and it's fun, well at least I think it is. Here's what I do. I keep track of what I buy on regular basis - those are my basics. Then I think about our special treats - you know - the ones that are a tad bit expensive but oh so delightful. I look around for the best buy, sales, use coupons if I have them, check the clearance bins, etc. My kids love, love, love Little Debbie snack cakes. I know I can make my own and do. However, they become special treats for them and so I look for bargains. When I find something that is part of my equation (price+satisfaction vs my making it myself)) and find it's a good deal I go for it. Only buy what you know you and your family will eat. That really rock bottom deal on asparagus won't do you any good if no one will eat it.It doesn't take a lot to start your stocking up. If you normally purchase 2 cans of one kind of veggie a week, increase it to 3 or 4 each week. Buy 2 bags of flour instead of one. You don't have to do it all in one week. Set aside $5-10 extra a week and use that.

How do you store? I've already mentioned canned goods - any nook and cranny works. The rest - well they require a bit of handling to store. All of my dry goods get transferred to storage containers. I buy food grade ones from here - Big Tray . All pasta, rice, flours, sugar, beans, dried corn and bulk dehydrated food goes into 4+ qt containers . The initial cost may be a bit high but the reuse is well worth it. I bought my containers about 8 years ago and they are holding up very well. I also save jars. A cleaned out glass mayo jar can store enough dried beans for one meal for my family.

Take a look at what containers you would normally throw away. Those screw top cap spice jars can be cleaned and sterilized to house more home grown and dried herbs. They are also great for nuts, bolts, nails, etc. I routinely use quart and pint sized canning jars to store stuff in. Also, Rubbermaid trash cans with food grade liners work well if you want to store a large amount of flour, rice and sugar.

No matter what you store or how you store, please be sure to date everything. A sticky note taped to a jar or a sharpie marker on a lid or can. That way you can rotate and use up the oldest first. If you utilize a freezer separate from your fridge, be sure to keep an inventory sheet so you know at a glance what you have and not waste the cold air digging around. Mark all of your freezer items with description and date as soon as they come out of the shopping bag or the kitchen pot. I hate defrosting a container of what I thought was leftover stew only to find that it's leftover UFO.

With the flu season hitting everywhere, it makes sense to stock up in the event you can't get to a grocery store. Having food in the house, ready to use means one less thing to worry about.

Weekend Fun

2009-10-19T22:09:00.000-04:00

This going to be a rambling post. No rhyme or reason.

For most people, the weekends mean catch up time at home, doing laundry, grocery shopping, getting out and about. All the things you didn't get done during the week gets done on the weekend. For us, this time is usually our down time. We do devote some time to chores that require all 4 of us to complete.

Friday afternoon was one of those days. My husband and son climbed on the roof to clean the chimney. I would have gone up there but ladders and I do not mix well. My nickname is Princess Grace. After that was completed, Hubby started splitting some of the wood we have stored. Most of it is small enough that one whack and it's done. 30 Minutes later and we were carrying in wood for the small rack that my husband made to hold the wood by the fireplace. Why buy something fancy when you can make your own? I don't need BH&G worthy, I need practical and cheap. It holds enough for 2 days. We settled down to a big pot of beef stew and biscuits for dinner and lounged the rest of the evening.

Saturday was a yucky day - cold, rainy, I don't think it hit 50 degrees. Supposed to be in the 30's tonight. The dampness in the air and the low temps (for us) meant I had to have a fire. Our first for the year. Something tells me this winter is going to be a tough one for us. I got the fire lit and going well, walked away for a minute and what do I come back to? My big old dog hogging the heat. He and the cats played roulette all afternoon. It was rather comical.

Because the temps were supposed to be low Saturday night, we had to heat the greenhouse. We lit an old camping oil lamp, along with making an air exchange vent in the thing. The air temp outside was 40 and the inside of the greenhouse was 65+. If it weren't so damp in there, I'd sleep in it

Sunday was a low key day, nothing big going on. Made a trip to the library and almost went fishing. I say almost because we were all too lazy to get off the couch and go.

Sunday night brought us our first frost. About 3 weeks early for around here. We need to add another lamp when the temps get lower. It's just a matter of time before the leaves fall from the trees - yay more compost material! The wooded area we leave alone but the rest of the working areas, we clean and keep neat and tidy or at least we try.

A couple of weeks ago we added to our family - a stray kitten my son found wandering the fields. He's a cutey. We haven't had a kitten in the house in almost 5 years. It took over a week for the dog and cats to accept him but now it's one big happy fur family. Peanut (right) is snuggling with mean "Mommy" Shadow.

Why The Name Choice?

2009-10-16T22:06:00.001-04:00

I get asked all the time why I chose the name I did for our tiny little homestead. Some chuckle, others scratch their heads in bewilderment.
Here's the scoop - Thor's Hammer - here's what Wiki says about it :
The Prose Edda gives a summary of Mjöllnir's special qualities in that, with Mjöllnir, Thor:

... would be able to strike as firmly as he wanted, whatever his aim, and the hammer would never fail, and if he threw it at something, it would never miss and never fly so far from his hand that it would not find its way back, and when he wanted, it would be so small that it could be carried inside his tunic.^[1]

Thinking of our endeavors brought the hammer to mind. It's strong, never failing and always returns. I'm hoping it's a good omen to use that name.

Cold, Rainy Days of Fall

2009-10-16T10:45:00.001-04:00

This time of year, we never know what the weather will be like. One day it can be 80 degrees and sunny, the next it can be 50 and rainy. I recall a saying from the New England states - "don't like the weather, wait a few minutes". Down here in the south, things are done slower, be it speech, chores or well...even weather. Except for the hot dog days of summer, each day is like a rollercoaster.

I like rainy days. They get me in the mood for cleaning, baking, all the things that make the house smell wonderful and cozy.
What I don't like about rainy days is the mess it creates. Mud tracked everywhere. We have to make sure the goat is high and dry and snug and fed, the outside dog must be fed and cared for, the outside wild cats have to have food as well. The inside dog allowed out for his potty breaks and run. All that means trekking through the sloshy, muddy yard. "Some people" forget to whisk their shoes off and take them off in the laundry room. It's a good thing my husband still has his commercial carpet cleaning equipment left from our first business venture years ago.

Rainy days also tend to be more "computer" days. Once the chores and lessons are done, we all jockey for computer time. Play computer time. I'm hooked on simple games online like popping balloons and scrabble type games. I've also been spending a lot of time exploring ways to generate an online income. I do surveys, etc. I am also using this blog to be an affiliate for certain chosen merchants. Those that meet my criteria and offer what I use and think others reading my blog might use.

I predict the smell of wood fires in the very near future. The weather here is being very wonky and unpredictable. Gotta get on the roof and clean the chimney. When we moved in here in February 12 years ago, the heat pump had not been installed yet. It was raining to beat the band and all we had was very soggy and wet deadfall to burn for heat. Those firelogs you can buy just about anywhere never did seem to offer as much heat as a good oak blaze does. So we planned much better afterward. Spring and early summer finds us getting the wood box filled and in the dry for winter. We still have more to cut up but we are ready for the fireplace season to start. Chimney safety is a huge priority here. Every fall we clean everything, inspect for cracks or holes or looseness in the insert. An investment of about $20 for a chimney cleaning kit has made that very easy for us. Plus, we can clean the stack several times during the winter without having to wait for a sweep to be available. If you don't do the sweep yourself, please remember to have it done before lighting your first fire of the season. Also now is a good time to check those fire extinguishers everyone should have.
Daylight Savings time ends on November 1st. Mark your calendars to change out your smoke detector batteries.

More about Thor's Hammer Farm

2009-10-13T00:23:00.011-04:00

I've received a few private emails asking for more information about my little "homestead".
Because of privacy issues, I won't go into too many personal details but I will share what I feel is "net safe". This blog will most often be one of willy-nilly thoughts and ramblings. There is no rhyme or reason to my posts - they just get posted as the thought hits.

I live in South Carolina on about 1 1/2 ares of danged hard red clay. I've been in my little corner of the world for almost 12 years. My area is rural/urban, which means look one way and you see farms, look the other way you see strip malls. Originally the plot of land I purchased was deed restricted - meaning nothing other than your typical neighborhood with picket fences and flower boxes. That changed very quickly. Covenants are no longer enforced (or held up in legal venues) and a good many places around here have been deeded back to agricultural tax bases.

What does that mean for me? Well, it means I can do what I wish as long as I am not a public nuisance. The most logical choice for me was to go more towards agriculture. Pull up in front of my house and you'd never know the back acreage contained a mini-farm in the works. That will change once the front portion is fenced and I rotate the eventual goat herd hither and yonder. My opening picture is of my one and only goat (for now) - a part pygmy nanny that found us to be suitable as a home.

We have built a small greenhouse. Inside houses a few tomato plants, some plants that are squash, pumpkin or watermelon - we won't know until they grow a bit - invaders from the compost heap, Basil and some flowers. It's an experiment. If it works and we are able to maintain through winter, then it will be expanded next year. It was built using old flexible fiberglass tent poles, bamboo, wire and sheet plastic.

This is the framework, minus the sheet plastic. The heating will be using buddy burners - small cans filled with corrugated cardboard and paraffin, lit like little bunsen burners. It's a small one - you have to stoop to enter but it seems to be doing well.

Summers here are hot as Hades so A/C is a necessity. I wish we had other alternatives because of the sheer cost. Winters verge on mild - we do get snow and ice from time to time but some years we never see a flake. Other years we get monstrous icestorms that knock the power out for a while. We heat mostly with the fireplace but back it up with the heat pump. Our firewood is gleaned from deadfall or free wood we find via word of mouth. Having a wooded section does provide some firewood. Below is our most unusual snowfall in March of '09.

We home school 2 children - a son - almost 14 and a daughter 11. That's a journey all it's own. We started almost 7 years ago and it's definitely a work in progress. My son is set on a military career (it's in his genes and by osmosis - he comes from a military background - Dad Army, grandfathers Marines and Navy, great grandfather Navy, uncle's both Navy and Marines) and my daughter on a Culinary path (I guess she gets it from my scientific kitchen experiments). My daughter drives me to cook more, bake more and create new recipes. My son drives me to get up, get out and "do". Day by day is my mantra. Both children have a love of animals (we have 4 cats, 2 dogs, a goat, several wild cats that feed here, a raccoon and a possum) and family and enjoy the the way we live. That's my reward.

This is our classroom. Just the sit down area. The world is really our classroom.

I think that setting out on our journey is because of our children. Yearning to get back to basics and teaching them that the latest and greatest isn't always the greatest. I'll be content knowing my husband and I have set them on a path of self exploration, enjoying the basics that life has to offer and just looking around in nature to find something new to excite them.

Bread....Glorious Bread

2009-10-12T13:23:00.011-04:00

One of the things I am trying to do more of is cook from scratch. Cooking that way can sometimes be labor intensive and time consuming. I am always looking for faster, yet healthier ways to feed my family.
One of those ways is a fast bread. One that requires no kneading. I've tried all sorts of "quick breads" but they don't give me that good old fashioned flavor that true breads offer. Let's face it - who doesn't love fresh baked bread?
I found this article and recipe in Mother Earth News. It's called a 5 minute bread. (Follow the link to the article and recipe).Now, that doesn't mean you have fresh bread in 5 minutes. It means you can have fresh bread in the time it takes to pull a hunk of dough out of the refrigerator and shape it - that's the 5 minute part. There is no kneading. It takes all of 5 minutes to mix the ingredients together to get the dough ready to rise.
Give it a try. I'd be willing to bet you'd like it with the Chocolate Butter that is posted on my Sweet Mississippi friend's Fun and Frugal Living blog listed below or follow this link. This stuff is scrumptious!!!!!

I baked a loaf for dinner tonight. A small one. It doesn't look as good as the stock photo from the recipe link (probably because I am not a photographer and I forgot to clean my baking stone of crumbs and cornmeal). I have to say, this is a very dense bread - not suitable for sandwiches but perfect for soups, stews, chili's, etc. It's got a very crusty crust and the inside is moist. Very delicious and well worth the minimal effort to make. I would suggest a longer "french bread" type loaf instead of the round, but that's just me.
BTW - half of that small loaf was scarfed down using the Chocolate Butter I made this afternoon.

Welcome to my SC "farm".

2009-10-11T16:39:00.002-04:00

Many years ago, I picked up a magazine off the rack and started reading. I must have been about 20 or so. That magazine was Mother Earth News . That was all she wrote. I decided I wanted to live the simple lifestyle, get back to nature, do things the old fashioned way and just enjoy life.
It wasn't until I was in my mid 30's that I bought land and a home. I live on about one and a half acres now. Adding in kids and work to the mixture meant I didn't live my dream of the old fashioned lifestyle. I kind of worked at it but not very hard. I've always had a garden, and tried to do the 3 "R's" - reduce, reuse and recycle. I got into the tightwad, and Be Prepared mode thanks to some wonderful friends I met on AOL and private message boards.

2 years ago, at the age of 12, my son came home carrying a pygmy nanny goat. That started the ball rolling.

Our goal is to have more goats (around 6 or so) and also laying hens (maybe a dozen). Both will provide us with meat, milk, cheese, soap, and eggs (and a small extra income). By expanding the garden and greenhouse, we hope to greatly increase our produce output. The fruit trees are finally at bearing age and we have added a 100' row of Muscadine to the berry production.

This blog has been created to chronicle my family's journey. Also included here will be many other topics such as the frugal/tightwad lifestyle, cooking and gardening. You never know what may pop up here. I'm never satisfied with how this thing looks so I may change it frequently. Check back for surprises.

All comments are welcome. Ideas, articles, whatever - just send them my way.